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INPRIMATU
Strengthening linguistic immersion in education in the Basque Country
Aritza Urrengoetxea Cordovilla @aritzaurrengo 2021eko ekainaren 29a

At the end of the course, we have to reflect deeply on the effectiveness of the linguistic models of Basque education, as according to the data published by the Basque Government in Eustat, the Basque model (model D) has been the most successful in the 2020/2021 course in the compulsory and non-compulsory stages of the CAV, with a total of 255,763 students who have studied in Basque. In the Spanish model (model A), 55,259 students participated and in the intermediate (model B) 67,449 students. These data show that there are still many registrations to study in Spanish, especially in the Baccalaureate and in the Vocational Training courses. Among the reasons why it is not possible to study in Euskera are that the offers of learning in Euskera are insufficient at the highest educational levels mentioned, or that in many concerted centers it is not supported by model D. Therefore, for the process of Euskaldunization to be effective at all levels of Basque education, the following changes need to be made:

First, considering the linguistic models offered in the centers, in the public network model D is the one with the main offer. However, in some villages there are public schools that offer models A and B, although demand is very low. Therefore, taking into account the registrations, only the Euskaldun model should be offered with greater success in public centres. On the other hand, as regards the concerted centres, it is necessary to differentiate between the centres of the Federation of Ikastolas and the Christian schools. The offer of ikastolas is model D, but that of Christian schools is mostly model A and B. Therefore, when studying in full in Basque, there is a clear imbalance between the offers of the public network and those of the Christian schools in Basque Country. It is clear that the concerted centres publish their educational offer and have that right from their own point of view and of private interest, but, although they are not public institutions, thousands of children receive and are important social actors. Christian schools should therefore rethink their attitude towards model D and have the courage to offer a Euskaldun and effective model, for the benefit of the Euskaldunisation process.

"The linguistic models in force are exhausted, so there should be a single model of linguistic immersion in Basque in the Basque Country Education Law"

Secondly, the tendency of some students to study Baccalaureate in Model A after completing the previous educational stages in Model D, as stated in the letter “Registration Report 2020-2021” written by the Technical Education Service of the City of Barakaldo, in Compulsory Secondary Education 195 students and in the Model D were enrolled. In the Baccalaureate, however, the data are very different; in model A, 536 students and in model D, 446 students. This situation is especially frequent in Castilian and Spanish zones, which indicates that the process of Euskaldunization in the educational field does not work correctly in many municipalities, since although students learn mostly in Model D in the compulsory stages, they are largely predisposed to go to centers agreed to offer Model A below. Consequently, there is a need for a change of attitude on the part of public institutions, since there is no campaign for non-compulsory Baccalaureate studies to be carried out in Euskera, which contradicts the commitment that some municipalities make for the learning of Euskera in the compulsory stages.

Thirdly, with regard to Vocational Training, although campaigns have been carried out in recent years for the training cycles to be taught in Basque, the offer is very scarce and in general they are taught in Spanish. According to data prepared by Eustat, the sum of data from public and concerted CAPV centers, in 2020/2021 a total of 18,090 students of Model A underwent some cycle of Vocational Training of a secondary or higher degree. 9,321 students in model D. Therefore, there is much to be done by the institutions for the Professional Formation to be Euskaldun, since most students learn Euskera in their learning process, but at the end of the obligatory stage, in most cases they only have the option to learn the Spanish trade, which can have negative consequences. For example, they tend to use Spanish in the skills they have learned. Moreover, although the mother tongue of many students is the Basque language, unfortunately they do not have the possibility to learn the cycle they want in their own language; of course, students should have the right to learn the profession also in their mother tongue.

In summary, although the success of model D is notable in view of the registrations and offers of linguistic models, it is not entirely true, as many students perform their final studies in model A. Therefore, it is necessary to make an attractive offer and a deep reinforcement of the model of immersion by the institutions in all educational stages, since, in view of the data studied, this model is the one that really euskalduniza effectively. Studies show that only boys and girls enrolled in an immersion system are able to effectively engage in the two official languages of the CAPV. Therefore, the current linguistic models are exhausted and, consequently, the Basque Country’s educational law should regulate a single model of linguistic immersion in Basque, as well as guarantee bilingualism, as this is the only way to guarantee the right to study in Basque at all educational levels, regardless of whether they are compulsory or not.